Whether or not Harden deserves the max, the fact of the matter is that he's worth whatever someone's willing to pay him. And many teams would instantly offer the max for him. Same reason why big men are often overpaid, like Omar freaking Asik

30 mins a game and putting up those numbers at 23 deserves max. Sorry but OKC is gonna wish they kept him in a few years. Harden is easily a top 4 sg in the league. Just because he was coming off the bench doesnt mean he really wasnt a starter. It just was better for them to have him off the bench. That like saying ginobli doesn't deserve max cuz he would come off the bench